


The Bright Pink Post-It

by fallenice



Category: KAT-TUN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Memory Loss, community: je_otherworlds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-03
Updated: 2013-01-03
Packaged: 2017-11-23 12:23:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/622101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallenice/pseuds/fallenice
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nakamaru visits a Kame who doesn’t remember.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Bright Pink Post-It

**Author's Note:**

> Parallel timelines. The other timeline is indicated by italicized text + indent.

“I am sorry but… you are?”

The visitor points to one of the post-its on the wall and then at himself.

_Nakamaru Yuuichi  
Friend. Visits twice a week. Likes soccer. Newscaster. Doesn’t drink coffee. _

“Oh,”

Kamenashi Kazuya doesn’t remember.

 

 

___

 

 

> _They met in the most mundane of ways._
> 
> _“Hey, are you here for the freshman orientation?” Nakamaru asked._
> 
> _“Yes! Are you? Why is there no one else here?” The other boy shifted his feet anxiously, “Did we mess up the date?”_
> 
> _“Freshman Orientation? Isn’t it at Hall V?” came the reply when they asked a third student._
> 
> _“Isn’t this Hall V?”_
> 
> _“This is Hall B, Hall V is all the way on the other side of the campus,”_
> 
> _“Shit,”_
> 
> _They sprinted the whole way._
> 
> _That day, Nakamaru found out that the guy who had talked to him was Kamenashi Kazuya, loved baseball, had 3 brothers and would have been a professional baseball player if not for an injury in a tournament._
> 
> _But he didn’t find out Kamenashi’s contact details._
> 
>  

 

___

 

 

“Hello, big-nose,” greets the voice (Akanishi Jin) from the phone.

“Who are you calling big-nose,” Nakamaru replies in faux indignation, “How are you?”

“Excited for the baby! How are you?”

“A lot of work?”

“How’s Kame? Has he managed to remember anyone for more than 24 hours?”

Nakamaru sighs.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“Nakamura! Meet my boyfriend, Kazu!” Jin, his coursemate-turned-good-friend in college said._
> 
> _“It’s Nakamaru….”_
> 
> _He froze in midsentence._
> 
> _“You are a media studies major too?” Kamenashi said when he recovered from the shock, to which Nakamaru nodded._
> 
> _They remembered to exchange contact details at the end of the day and Kamenashi insisted on being called Kame ever since._

___

 

 

Nakamaru hears the music coming from the other side of the door when he knocks.

“I am sorry, but who are you?” Kame answers the door, confusion in his eyes, “I… don’t remember things,”

A ritual that they go through every time they meet.

Nakamaru points at the post-it note before he enters the room and finds himself unsurprised when spotting another visitor in the apartment, sitting by the piano.

His post-it reads:

_Ueda Tatsuya  
Musician. Comes by to play the piano sometimes. Does not like noise. _

Ueda stands up upon seeing Nakamaru enter and prepares to leave. Nakamaru gestures for him to sit back down.

“Stay and play for us, please?”

 

 

___

 

 

> _Nakamaru, Kame and Jin met Ueda Tatsuya towards the end of their second year in college through a project._
> 
> _“Why didn’t you cover for Nakamaru’s mistakes at the presentation?” Kame yelled as he entered the seminar room, “You were right beside him when he messed up the figures,”_
> 
> _“Stop bossing people around,” Ueda replied, cracking his fists._
> 
> _“Why are you so unaware…” Kame continued._
> 
> _And then there was blood._
> 
> _Later, he would realize that the reason why Kame was so short tempered was because he and Jin were heading to a breakup._

___

 

 

“Tadaima,” Nakamaru says to no one.

The house is too huge for one person.

 

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru brings Kame sunflowers during his next visit.

“Aren't these flowers a little too bright?” Kame says as he puts them into the vase.

“Didn’t you like sunflowers?”

 

 

___

 

 

> _“Nakamaru, why isn't the vase replying me,” Kame said, obviously drunk after his graduation celebration, “Hello vase, I want to bring you home, can I bring you home,”_
> 
> _“You should be the one who is going home,” Nakamaru dragged Kame away from the vase and into the car._
> 
> _“But the vase…”_
> 
> _Nakamaru found himself unable to suppress his smile when Kame sulked all the way back home. It was at that moment that he realized that the valedictorian of their year, Kame, could be cute too._

 

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru pauses outside Kame’s doorstep when he hears Kame singing about bonds that cannot disappear, accompanied by a guitar playing.

He knocks only when the song finishes.

Nakamaru points to the post-it before Kame even asks.

 

 

___

 

 

> _Nakamaru didn’t expect to be part of the exact same show (Sunday Countdown) with Kame after they graduated._
> 
> _“Nakamaru?” Kame said as he opened the door to let him in, but there was only mirth in his voice._
> 
> _In that meeting, they also met Taguchi and Koki, who were both set designers. No one was really sure why the four of them stuck around for drinks afterwards, when all Nakamaru and Kame did was not to laugh at Taguchi’s stupid puns, and laugh when Koki kicked him._
> 
> _Kame concluded that maybe Taguchi was masochistic and liked it when people didn’t laugh at his jokes._

 

 

___

 

 

“Come play with us,” Koki shouts from his position on the couch as Kame reads the bright-pink post-it with Nakamaru’s details.

“I will beat the both of you!” Nakamaru greets.

“I will beat you in beats!” Taguchi adds - they are playing Guitar Hero - to the groans of everyone. Koki whacks Taguchi’s head with the console.

“You guys seem like good friends,” Kame comments quietly.

 

 

___

 

 

“We are going for a group date later tonight, do you want to come with us?” One of his co-workers asks.

“It’s okay,”

They look at him sympathetically.

 

 

___

 

 

“Squid!” Kame says, clapping his hands happily like a three year old when Nakamaru visits, “Who are you and why are you bringing me squid?”

“Nakamaru,” he replies, pointing with his head in the general direction of the bright-pink post-it. Kame spots it quickly and grins as he writes, “Brought me squid” under Nakamaru’s name.

Kame is emerging from the kitchen with orange juice when he asks, “Are you staring at me?”

 

 

___

 

 

> _Nakamaru and Kame were in charge of different segments in the show. Nakamaru was in charge of a corner called Majisuka where he investigated popular trends. Kame was chosen as a sportscaster and often visited tournaments to interview sportsmen._
> 
> _Everyone in the crew seemed to like Kame, saying things like how he performed above expectations, reported like a pro, or how he was simply all round impressive._
> 
> _Nakamaru, on the other hand, felt that he was anything but that. He reacted slowly, blanked out often, learnt the ropes slowly and often caused trouble for other people._
> 
> _To Nakamaru, Kame was perfect for his job, professional and good with people. An inspiration._
> 
> _All Nakamaru could do was to chase after the star that was Kame._

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru is quite sure that there are noises coming from the apartment as he knocks.

“Taguchi and Koki came just now and installed a television,” Kame tells him matter-of-factly after he introduces himself.

Nakamaru frowns. Kame notices.

_Kame always notices._

It’s the way his eyebrows twitches a little, the way he bites his lips, wondering whether he should react to it, the way his weight shifts uneasily…

Nakamaru always knows too.

“I told them that I wanted to keep myself updated on what’s going on around the world, even though I won’t remember anything,”

The sound of the television fills the remaining silence between them.

“Isn’t that you on the television! Majissuka?” Kame jokes but Nakamaru can see the melancholy behind those eyes.

 

 

___

 

 

> _However, Kame instantly transformed into a child when presented with the things he loved._
> 
> _And apparently Nakamaru was Kame’s new favourite plaything._
> 
> _“Majisuka?” Kame commented when Nakamaru told him that his segment would be extended for another 5 minutes starting with the coming episode._
> 
> _Kame laughed brightly at his own joke, while Nakamaru just stared, not knowing how to comment._
> 
> _He was fascinated, so fascinated at the many faces of Kame. The Kame who made heads turn when he walked down the streets of Shibuya, the Kame who concentrated on reading newspapers in preparation for his recording, the Kame who cooked at the pantry because he didn’t like the food at the cafeteria, the Kame who sang to himself when he thought that he was alone in the studio…_
> 
> _Nakamaru would be lying if he said that he didn’t like what he saw._
> 
> _Maybe it was bordering on obsession._

___

 

 

“Why do you keep doing this?” Koki asks Nakamaru in private.

“Why can’t I?” He replies.

Kame is the only thing in the world that Nakamaru is stubborn about.

“We don’t know how long he will remain this way. I love Kame too, I mean, we all visit him often too, but you are technically putting your life on pause for him…”

It’s not that he doesn’t want to give up.

He _can’t_ give up.

 

 

___

 

.

> _“Don’t you think we are fated to be together?”_
> 
> _Nakamaru dropped his fork in surprise._
> 
> _The duo had decided to celebrate their first paycheck with a dinner at some rather fancy restaurant – Kame’s choice._
> 
> _“Just saying,” Kame laughs, “Look at your reaction.”_
> 
> _Nakamaru footed the bill that day._

___

 

 

“Hello, Nakamaru,” Kame smiles at him.

For a moment, he thought Kame remembered.

But Kame’s smile doesn’t reach his eyes – a curve of the lips that Kame reserves for people whom he thinks he is supposed to know, but he really doesn’t.

Nakamaru forces one back anyway.

Kame continues smiling.

And Nakamaru wants Kame to always smile.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“Smile a little?” Kame whined at him as he sat on Nakamaru’s desk, on top of a stack of research papers._
> 
> _“How am I supposed to smile when some AD managed to lose the tape for tomorrow’s episodes? I am going to cause everyone trouble again…”_
> 
> _Kame placed his hand on top of Nakamaru’s._
> 
> _“But I like your smile,”_
> 
> _A reassuring presence, Kame was._

 

 

___

 

 

> _“I don't think I can go to Russia alone for the interview.”_
> 
> _“You can do it,” Kame told him, “If you lasted through that final year in college, you can do it!”_
> 
> _“I am not you, Kame, I…”_
> 
> _“You are Nakamaru Yuuichi, and you can do it.”_
> 
> _Nakamaru still looked unconvinced, so Kame reached to unhook the necklace that he was wearing._
> 
> _“Bring this along with you then,” Kame said, passing him the accessory, “Everywhere you go, it will be as if I am with you. Together, we will make it.”_

 

___

 

 

Sometimes Nakamaru can’t resist and he touches Kame. It’s nothing spectacular, really, he just brushes stray strands of hair away from Kame’s face, wipes food stains from Kame’s lips and lets his fingers linger a little longer than they’re supposed to on Kame’s hands.

When he is feeling extremely brave, he pecks Kame’s forehead gently.

Kame usually looks at him confused but not unhappy.

Nakamaru wants to believe that a part of Kame hasn’t forgotten him.

_No, that’s not it._

He believes that Kame remembers him.

 

 

___

 

 

> _Nakamaru didn’t really know how to deal with Kame. It was as if Kame had noticed him staring at him and was taking revenge on him for it. `_
> 
> _It began with lingering touches that progressed to a head on Nakamaru’s shoulder. Even that was insufficient for Kame after a while and he began whispering things and blowing air into Nakamaru’s ears._
> 
> _Nakamaru jumped at the contact every time._
> 
> _Kame only laughed._
> 
> _Slowly though, Nakamaru realized that he had grown used to Kame’s warmth from their thighs’ contact when they sat next to each other._

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru takes Kame out for a one-day trip on one of his free days, after he was allowed to do so by the doctor.

The moment they hit the highway (Nakamaru is the one driving), Kame leans his face against the window as he stares out at the blue sea that runs parallel to the road.

“I love the sea,” he declares from the passenger seat, “The sea looks like it’s shimmering in the sun!”

Nakamaru smiles.

A dove flies across the ocean and into the horizon.

When they step foot on the real beach after a two hour drive, Kame breathes in the salty air and says, “Let’s go surfing, it looks fun,”

“I can’t,”

“Let’s do it together!"

“I am scared!”

“Coward Nakamaru!”

“It’s impossible!” Nakamaru whines as Kame grabs his wrists and drags him to the shore.

Nakamaru ends up sitting on the sand and watching Kame surf. As Kame rises above the waves, Nakamaru knows that one day, they will rise above all these odds too.

 

 

___

 

 

> _The show’s first summer special brought the whole crew to the beach. Nakamaru found Kame sitting alone at a private spot just before dinner, with a rented surfboard by his side. He took a few moments to observe how the setting sun emphasized certain parts of Kame that Nakamaru had never noticed before._
> 
> _He could see the rise and fall of Kame’s chest as he breathed in the salty air. From the crooked nose to the thin lips, down the neckline and the protruding collar bones, Kame was breathtakingly beautiful. Away from work, away from the limelight, at his favourite place, Nakamaru thought that he could watch Kame forever._
> 
> _He did join Kame on the sand in the end, and Kame shifted closer to him so that he could feel the heat of Kame’s arms against his own._
> 
> _“You know, Yuicchi, I love the sea,” He told him as they watch the sun’s descent together._
> 
> _It was the first time Kame had called him Yuuichi._

 

___

 

 

The summer heat has caused Nakamaru to perspire furiously and his shirt is drenched by the time he rings Kame’s doordell.

“Hello?”

“Nakamaru,” he says, pointing to the post-it on the wall. Kame ushers Nakamaru in and passes a towel to dry himself with.

The feel of the towels makes Nakamaru remember.

If Kame doesn't remember, he tells himself, he will remember on his behalf then.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“Your towels have a terrible texture,” Kame commented when he arrived at Nakamaru’s house to watch a war movie (Saving Private Ryan), which Nakamaru proudly claimed to be his favourite._
> 
> _Nakamaru stared at Kame, and grumbled, “You were the one who drenched yourself in the summer rain. I’m only being helpful here.”_
> 
> _Kame laughed as he dried himself._

 

 

___

 

 

The doctor encourages Nakamaru to bring Kame out more to stimulate his brain waves after the beach trip.

He decides to bring Kame to a baseball match next and just the word baseball gets Kame excited enough that he gets ready to leave in less than five minutes.

Kame is still Kame, Nakamaru thinks to himself.

 

 

___

 

 

> _Being a sportscaster meant that Kame got to interview and sit in various baseball matches - there were other sports too, but baseball was the one that mesmerized Kame the most._
> 
> _Sometimes, for reasons unknown to Nakamaru, Kame brought him along too._
> 
> _“Are you guys dating,” They always asked._
> 
> _“No,” A standard reply._
> 
> _Somewhere along the way though, (he never really found out exactly when), he realized how much he wished that he could yes._

___

 

 

“Nakamaru, the pink post-it,” Nakamaru says when the door opens.

He can tell where the note is even with his eyes closed.

“Is there a festival outside?” Kame says, as he gestures to the scene outside the window.

“I think so. Do you want to go?” Nakamaru asks.

Kame nodded.

“Then let’s go,” Nakamaru says, “I think we will make it in time if we run,”

“Can we?” Kame asks, a little unsure.

“Yes, now, “

Nakamaru is never this spontaneous.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“I feel like going to Kyoto today, come with me?”_
> 
> _10am._
> 
> _“Now? Are you serious?”_
> 
> _“Come with me?”_
> 
> _Kame was always the more spontaneous one._

 

___

 

 

“Why don’t you give up? It’s not like he is going to remember you anytime soon,” Jin says.

Nakamaru puts the phone down.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“Kame can be kind of clingy and needy,” Jin told Nakamaru over the phone._
> 
> _“Can you please stop saying such things about Kame?”_
> 
> _There was silence on the other side of the phone._
> 
> _“Nakamaru, are you…” Nakamaru could hear Jin swallowing, “…in love with Kame?”_
> 
> _Nakamaru put the phone down._

___

 

 

“Nakamaru, join me and Ueda?” Kame reads his name from the post-it, “Ueda is playing some music for me.”

Ueda makes a noise of acknowledgement before saying, “Not for you, Kame, I am practicing for my performance. “

He starts a new song as Nakamaru makes himself comfortable.

“I like this song, it makes me feel warm inside,” Kame confesses.

“It’s called Aishiteiru Kara,” Ueda says.

 

 

___

 

 

> _Kame drove the two of them to a hilltop one evening. It was a beautiful place, quiet and private, where they could see the lights from the buildings below, sparkling like stars._
> 
> _Kame took out his own guitar and started strumming to the melody of Aishiteiru Kara as he sang._
> 
> _“That was a nice song,” Nakamaru commented at the end._
> 
> _“Yuuchii,” Kame breathed out in exasperation, “I just confessed to you.”_
> 
> _“You did?” Nakamaru replied._
> 
> _“Yes,“ Kame whined, “You are terrible at being romantic.”_

 

___

 

 

“Don’t you think the stars are pretty? They shine in the darkness and provide whatever little light they can for people going home at night,” Kame tells Nakamaru one evening as he stares out of the window.

Nakamaru looks up to the sky on his way home, wishing that they would all continue to watch over Kame.

 

 

___

 

 

> _They lay on the grass under the night sky, so close to each other that they could hear each other’s breathing._
> 
> _Under that star-lit sky, they whispered secrets to each other’s ears and kissed, tongues engaging in a dance that Nakamaru would never forget._

___

 

 

“This is our new sportscaster,” The producer says.

“You will sit there,” he points in the direction of Kame’s former seat.

Nakamaru’s chest clenches.

 

 

___

 

 

The smell of cake greets Nakamaru as he enters, “You… baked?”

“I felt like it,” Kame tells him, “Am I… supposed to remember something?”

“No, no, it’s nothing,” All Nakamaru can do is pull a confused Kame into a tight hug.

It's Nakamaru’s birthday today.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“This is the best birthday present I have received in a while,” Nakamaru said as he fed himself with another mouthful of the fruit cake that Kame had baked._
> 
> _“Then I will bake Yuuichi a cake every year,” Kame promised him with a smile._
> 
> _Around them, summer had turned to autumn, green had turned to orange._

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru brings Kame out on a winter morning.

Kame is awfully excited about the snow. He prances around, makes footprints in the snow and drags Nakamaru into building a snowman with him. Nakamaru is concentrating on finding something for the snowman’s nose when he hears Kame’s voice.

“Nakamaru?”

Kame throws a snowball at him as he looks up.

“Hey!” Nakamaru whines and chases after Kame with his own snowball.

Kame’s laughter rings in Nakamaru’s head long after he reaches home.

 

 

___

 

 

> _Kame had strange habits, Nakamaru learnt. One of them was to stick his fingers into Nakamaru’s pockets in winter._
> 
> _“Warm,” he explained and rested his head on Nakamaru’s shoulders._
> 
> _“Yuuichi is always so warm,” Kame repeated as they walked home. Nakamaru did not know how to respond, except to let Kame lean against him till they reached Kame’s house._
> 
> _“Stay?” Kame asked him._
> 
> _Nakamaru never left._

___

 

 

Kame serves Nakamaru pancakes with strawberry jam on them.

“Do you like it? I made them myself because I was bored,”

Nakamaru tastes the food, “Mm, it tastes like home”

“Do I have a home?” Kame asks.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“Good morning, Yuuichi, pancakes for you?”_
> 
> _Kame called out from the kitchen._
> 
> _“Yes, with strawberry jam, please!”_

 

 

___

 

 

“I feel like I am forgetting some important things sometimes,” Kame confesses to Nakamaru, “When I watched television earlier, I felt like I was supposed to be part of it, but I don’t know what is it that I am a part of,”

Nakamaru remains slient.

“Am I a part of something, Nakamaru?”

What can Nakamaru tell him?

“Mm,” is all Nakamaru replies in the end.

They fall back into silence.

 

 

___

 

 

> _“You know, Yuuichi, you are really memorable,” Kame told him._
> 
> _“I’m not,“ Nakamaru never thought that he was worth remembering for any reason; he was normal, cowardly, and bland. Ueda used to joke that Nakamaru blended into the crowd so much that he couldn't locate Nakamaru after he got off the car._
> 
> _“To me you are, “Kame said definitively and proceeded to kiss his forehead._
> 
> _“The way you look when you are working hard while doing research, “ Kame continued, kissing Nakamaru’s eyelids, “The way you fingers move when you write, the way you frown when you are puzzled, everything, everything is carved into my heart,”_
> 
> _Kame sighed happily and whispered, “I love you,”_
> 
> _“I love you too,” was all he could reply._

 

 

___

 

 

“Hey, did we used to date?” Kame asks one day, all of a sudden.

Nakamaru doesn’t answer.

 

 

___

 

 

“I think he is remembering,” Ueda tells Nakamaru, “He has been asking _questions._ ”

 

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru brings Kame to see the cherry blossoms next.

“I think I am supposed to know you from way before,” Kame says, squatting down, “If I stay in there, I will never remember anything,”

He opens his palm and lets some of the cherry blossoms rest on it before blowing them away gently, letting the slight breeze bring them to their next destination.

Nakamaru says nothing.

All he does is to pick up the petals that land on Kame’s hair.

Kame drags Nakamaru to squat down in front of him and blows the petals into Nakamaru’s face. The older man sneezes and scrunches his face in annoyance.

Kame laughs for a while, before his expression changes.

“Will you tell me about myself? Even though I won’t remember?”

 

 

___

>  
> 
>  
> 
> _“Cherry blossoms,” Kame explained as he dragged Nakamaru to the park._
> 
> _“Wait,” Kame stopped suddenly to tiptoe and pick up a pink petal that landed on his hair. He took the chance to steal a peck on his cheek as well._
> 
> _Spring was the season of beginnings._

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru doesn't know where to start or how to continue, so he decides to bring Kame to his –their- apartment.

On their way though, they witness a car accident that makes Kame freeze on the spot, cold perspiration forming on his forehead.

“Kame?”

Nakamaru catches him as his eyes close and he blanks out.

 

 

___

 

` 

> _“Who are you?”_
> 
> _It was the first thing that Kame said when he woke up from the car accident._
> 
> _“It’s me,” Nakamaru said, “You don’t remember?”_
> 
> _“I am sorry, but I don’t think we have met before. I am Kamenashi Kazuya, nice to meet you.”_

 

___

 

 

Nakamaru is by Kame’s hospital bed when he stirs.

“I see you are still wearing the necklace I gave you before you went to Russia, Yuuchi,” Kame said, pointing to Nakamaru’s necklace.

**Author's Note:**

> Betaed by: Isa.  
> Inspired by: Mr Brain and The Professor and the Housekeeper


End file.
